A 21-YEAR-OLD man with a roulette gambling addiction snatched £240 from his employer’s till and walked out of work because he had blown his entire wage on the gaming sites.

Blackburn magistrates heard Ryan Lee Pilkington had no money to buy his girlfriend a birthday present.

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The court also heard that he and could not borrow any more money off his mum and grandma because they knew where the cash was going.

Pilkington, of Emma Street, Accrington, pleaded guilty to theft of £240 from Pound Bakery, Broadway, Accrington.

He was made subject to a community order with a 25-day rehabilitation activity requirement and ordered to pay £240 compensation, £85 costs and £60 victim surcharge.

Kerry Grieve, prosecuting, said on the day of the theft the manageress of the shop had noticed that Pilkington was "distant and out of sorts".

“At 1.20pm he walked out of the bakery without saying a word to anyone,” said Mrs Grieve.

“When she checked the till she found there was £240 missing and the matter was reported to the police.”

When he was interviewed, Pilkington admitted to police that he had a gambling problem, the court was told.

“It was pay day and he said he had lost all his money gambling,” said Mrs Grieve.

“He said he simply grabbed a handful of £10 notes and left.

“He said it was the silliest thing he had ever done.”

Pilkington told police he lost his money playing roulette and had had a problem since he was 18-years-old.